3, 2, 1 … Chinese New Year holidaymakers head off for far horizons
- People plan to make the most of the three-day break by taking to the roads, rails and skies
- But beware of travel disruptions caused by heavy fog and haze, weather authorities warn
And while the break is just three days and haze may be blanketing much of China, travellers appear keen to venture beyond their provincial borders to soak up the sights in other parts of the country.
Holidaymakers were expected to take more than 15 million domestic rail trips on Saturday, the first day of the break, up 60 per cent on the same time in 2020, Shanghai-based The Paper reported, quoting China State Railway Group.
A number of new high-speed rail lines is expected to ramp up tourism along the lines, including along the new section from Huangshan in Anhui province to Nanchang in Jiangxi, and between Guangzhou and Shantou, both in Guangdong province.
The number of domestic flights is also on the rise, with 49,000 expected to take off over the three days. The total is about 85 per cent higher than the same period last year and roughly 3 per cent more than in 2019, according to the report.
02:41
Millions flock to China's main tourist attractions to celebrate National Day
Online travel company Trip.com said more than half of the domestic tour reservations booked for Saturday were for people travelling outside their home provinces.